Week #78 *January 25, 2016

LAST LETTER

Hey Everyone,

Well I am in the mission home right now and it is so weird seeing this all coming to an end.  These have seriously been the best 18 months of my life.  So many amazing things that I have learned and people that I have met.  I am so sad to be leaving behind this beautiful country and all of the people that I love.

This week has been very special.  My companions and the members here are so sweet.  They threw me a surprise going away lunch.  The familia Escarate came home from the beach for the day just to throw me a bbq it was very kind of them.

We also found Gabriela this week. She is moving to Santiago to study and she promised to talk to the missionaries there.  I am so grateful that we could find her and say goodbye to her she is so special.

Yesterday was Coni’s baptism it was so special.  She was so excited.  She came out of the water after the baptism and came and gave us a big wet hug with tears running down her face and told us that she just felt an overwhelming happiness come over her.  Jazmin was also really emotional. She says that she is really excited for her baptism.  They are all such a special family I am so excited for him.

I couldn’t have asked for a better last Sunday.

Well I just want to thank  everyone for all their support while I have been on the mission. I love you all so much and I cant wait to see you and share more experiences with you on Friday.

I love you!

Hermana Stringham 

Week #77 *January 18, 2016

Hey everyone,

Wow I cant believe that my mission is coming to an end it just doesn’t seem so real.  Our sector right now is doing amazing and I just feel so blessed to be hear in this sector with my companion as they are just a dream come true.  Definitely a good note to end on as we have just been working so hard there is not time to thinking about the fact that my mission is coming to an end.

Oh so with Gabriela she has basically just disappeared. She doesn’t answer her phone or come out the times we went to her house and we don’t know what happened so please pray for her.

Fabiola came to church this week again she is doing awesome and she says she feels really good.  We are planning on putting a baptism date with her this week so she could really use your prayers. Caroline her daughter didn’t come she is struggling with something but she didn’t want to talk about it please pray for her we are really worried about it.

We taught a less active this week who is almost activated her name is Ana Maria  she is doing so good she has been doing so good.  she just sent her sone and now she is preparing to go to the temple, so we have been helping with that it has been so sweet. So Jazmin and Erik are doing awesome.  I just grow to love this family more and more each day.  They went to go get married this week, but the soonest date they could get is for the 9th of March, and so they are pretty bummed on that, but they both agreed that it must be for a reason and now Erik will probably be able to baptize Jazmin.  Her new baptism date is for the 13th of March.  We are so excited for them.  Seriously they are just so special. kTheir daughter Coni has decided that she doesn’t  want to wait, so she will be ba[tized next Sunday!!!!She is sow sweet.  We helped them move this week and so we really got to know them better.  It was fun;.  They live on the fifth floor and so they needed a lot of help.  We finished exhausted but it was fun.  Toni (Constanza) is just so special and so excited.  We did the pre entravista and she started to cry and she told us that she just felt so happy.  She is a very special 10 year old girl.  The family is doing awesome as well.  They have just such a strong desire to learn.  We taught about tithing this week and they accepted it immediately.  They have been really struggling with money to the point that we have taught by candle light because they couldn’t pay the power bill.  So, I was a little nervous.  I knew that they would accept it, but I thought it would be hard as well.  However they accepted it immediately and she said that it is incredible how the gospel works and the Lord asks so little of us to be able to build His kingdom and in turn He blesses us so much more.  Seriously they are the best.  Seriously we just feel so blessed to be in this sector, as this family is just so incredible and we have many other incredible investigators.  I could not have asked for a better way to finish the mission.

I can’t believe that this is all coming to an end,  It has been such an incredible experience and I guess I still have a little time left!  It is so heart braking as I am excited to see you all, but I am going to miss the people here so much!!!  Thank you for all that you guys have done for me in supporting me throughout my mission.

I love you all so much!

Love ya,

Hermana Stringham

Photos

Coni's Baptism *January 17, 2016

Photos

Week #76 *January 11, 2016

   

One of the most amazing weeks

Hey Everyone,

Wow this week has been just one full of amazing things and I don’t have a ton of time so I hope I can get to everything.

First of we started the week off in an amazing way, as I go to the temple.  The temple here in Chile was absolutely beautiful and it just felt like coming home after soo long.  We are so blessed to have a temple close by to get to go whenever you want.  We take it so much for granted. I just want to go back as much as I can when I get home.

When I was in the temple waiting, I was able to finish the Book of Mormon as my mission President had challenged us to read it .  It was a very special experience this time and I was newly assured of the truth of the Book of Mormon. It is such a powerful book and I am loving reading it again. Each time I just feel like I have a completely different perspective.

So this week we put 4 baptismal dates with a family. They didn’t come to church and have a lot of changes to make, but the have the desire to change. Their names are Vasna Michele Valentina and Nicolas. They are really special but need a lot of help please pray for them.

Right now we are teaching the most amazing family, Jazmin and Erik, that I told you about. Wow we went by this week to teach the word of wisdom and they instantly accepted it. In fact Jazmin said she really feels like it is true and she immediately went to the store after to buy some other types of drinks they can drink instead of tea and coffee. She is awesome.  Last night we went by to teach about the law of chastity and they aren’t actually married. So it may have come to a surprise to them that they need to get married, but the agreed and they are going to talk about it,  but they still want to be ready for that date and their kids were cheering them on to get married too. So that was cute. They told us we can be the witnesses at their wedding so that is really exciting.  They are just flourishing in the ward making friends. Their daughter Coni is already in 2nd Nephi after one week and is only ten years old.  Each time we go buy she has a new scripture she wants to share with us.  I just can’t explain the spirit that is in the lessons with this family they are so amazing and I love them so much please pray for them.   Erick is a less active and he is trying to give up smoking. He hasn’t smoke for 3 days and is praying a lot so please pray for him.  my companion and I are both giving something up with him.  My companion is trying to stop biting her nails and I have given up all sweets and sugar up to the baptism date with the sugar and honeslty it has been hard, but it has been so special doing it with him.  the baptism is on the 24th with Jazmin and Coni, my last Sunday here and they are just so excited, but we still have a lot to teach so we could really use your prayers.

Wow so I am running out of time, so  just to sum things up we had 7 investigators in the church, which was a huge miracle I will tell you more about them next week.    They are Marcelo which I have told you about, Fabiola and Carolina and Carla and Gustavo. So pray for them as well.  Today we went to 7 tazas to visit some water fall. It is so beautiful here in the mountains I will have to send pics   Well I am just about out of time, so I love you all so much and I will share more with you next week.

Love ya,

Hermana Stringham     

Photos *January 11, 2016 - Siete Tazas

Hermanas Stringham, Bishop, Blake, Prien, Bishop,
Revelo, Diaz, Morales
at 7 Tazas